One of the most historical sprinting moments happened on July 28, 2023 at the South American Championships when Issam Asinga broke the world junior record by having a time performance of 9.89 seconds for the men’s 100-meters. The eighteen-year-old athlete was there and then renounced as one of the few teenagers throughout the track and field history to ever make a record of less than 10 seconds in the said division.
Despite being on top for a time, Asinga’s world record currency does not stand due to his 4 year ban in participating at any track and field competition.
There has been an investigation on whether the youngster had used performance-enhancing drugs, and whether or not it was intentional. He tested positive for the GW-1516, a metabolite and a banned substance in track and field. The said culprit for this was the Gatorade Recovery and Immune Support Gummies, which was given last season to Asinga after he won the high school Gatorade track and field athlete of the year.
Asinga Suspended
After being positive, he was suspended and was not able to compete in the 2023 World Championships. Recently, the issue deepened when the search was all about knowing if he intentionally took the illegal substance, or if the gummies were laced with it in the distribution process. The Athletics Integrity Unit (AIU) later claimed that the gummies were not part of an unclean working environment, and were suspecting that the illegal drug was laced after the distribution process whether by Asinga, his coaches, or anyone from his team.
Due to this, Asinga’s punishment was 4 years of banishment away from track and field, and could not compete in any international competition. However, he can still train if he wishes to stay in the sport.
Asinga can only compete legally by August 2027. As per the AIU, this is a standard practice under any circumstances. If he decides to stay in the sport, he can compete at the next Olympics in Los Angeles by the year 2028.
Cover Photo: IG
Source: Total Running Productions
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